Guest guest Posted February 12, 2008 Report Share Posted February 12, 2008 Now I'm really lost as to whether it's better to control the cough (from what I understand, coughing can lead to more inflammation and hence infection and lung damage) or if it's better to actually keep coughing to bring the mucus up (when mucus itself can lead to inflammation, infection and damage)!?! Wow, talk about being caught between a rock and a hard place! Because we are afflicted w/Bronchiectasis.and bronchiectasis is about lung inflammation and mucous..I say it's better to cough and get it up and out. My nurse has told me the same thing..for us coughing is a good thing. Your sputum is thick and yellow? Watch that..sounds like a viral infection going on Sandie Never Look Down on SomeoneUnless You're Willing to Help Them UpThe year's hottest artists on the red carpet at the Grammy Awards. AOL Music takes you there. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted February 13, 2008 Report Share Posted February 13, 2008 Cassie, You can develop immunoglobulin deficiency from overuse of abx and cortisone. That is what happened to me. I haven't had to have immunoglobulin infusions yet, but am told that is what the treatment is if I get sicker. Very expensive and not too pleasant I understand. MarilynThe year's hottest artists on the red carpet at the Grammy Awards. AOL Music takes you there. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted February 13, 2008 Report Share Posted February 13, 2008 Cassie I hear your frustration.....and totally have the same problem! What I've been able to do with the herbs is lessen the quantity of mucous, the stickyness, and the thickness. It has never totally stopped, however for the first year everytime I opened my mouth to speak out came a mouthful of mucous...embarrassing totally....I should have bought shares in Kleenex....lol The colour of the mucous ranges in one day most days I hit the rainbow of colours that comes with Bronch.... I can totally live with the way things are now (not ideal), but when I open my mouth it is not full of mucous....(so I can work comfortably) Other than the occasional puff from the puffer usually for a bit of wheezing....I have not taken any antibiotics since the end of August, 2007. Here's my personal theory seeing as NONE of the drug treatments made any difference for me, I'm choosing not to take them and my Dr's are agreeing with me. The vits, herbs, and EXCERCISE all combined make my life somewhat enjoyable (not in comparison to where I was before I got this disease). I'm also trying to be realistic, I'm sure it would be fantasy thinking to believe that I can get back to where I was before Bronch, so I'm going to make the best of what I have and build on it. Personally, be totally in touch with your body and your thinking. Get a plan together that your comfortable with and go for it...record how you feel...if your feeling better then do more of the same......if not change the mix......Just build on it.....challenge yourself to do more and you will.......The people on this site are so amazing.....they never quit......and are certainly warning us of all the future has in store for us....so live for today...eat well,,,think well.....drink well,....sleep well,,,,,do the things that a human body require daily. Cheers abx Hi Joy, Good to hear from you again. And thx for all your input about the sputum log, abx, etc. Yes, I've had sputum cultures done in the past before. Some grew serratia marcescens and streptococcus, I believe. I was effectively treated for those bugs but unfortunately the yellow sputum just never went away! Funny thing, all my health problems really seemed to stem from that severe pneumonia several years ago. I'm always thinking that maybe I'll be able to get to where I was pre-pneumonia but I'm starting to lose hope since the rotating abx, prednisone and MWF of Zithromax aren't eradicating the condition (they do seem to help but never get rid of the sputum entirely)! What exactly did you mean when you said if you become resistant you are making the bronch worse? I'm starting to think that despite my dr's recommendation, I should try weaning off abx even if my sputum production and the characteristics of the sputum look worse. Perhaps the amount I produce (even if more) will be my true baseline and not masked by the abx & steroids. I can't even tell anymore whether I'm having an exacerbation or whether the sputum production is my true baseline because I've been on abx for so long (ie, 9 months of rotating abx and then more recently a couple of months on Zithromax). Was just hoping the abx could reverse the bronch (or whatever it is I have!) by diminishing the mucus production and therefore the lung damage since my condition is supposedly still in the early stages. But in light of the resistance issue, it's so confusing and so hard to know what to do with this disease! Also, the Combivent seems to suppress my cough but the sputum has actually come back and looks worse (ie, yellower, thicker). Guess I spoke too soon about it being a miracle drug! Guess I was just too optimistic at the time! Hope you're doing okay, Cassie Be a better friend, newshound, and know-it-all with Yahoo! Mobile. Try it now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted February 13, 2008 Report Share Posted February 13, 2008 Hi Cassie, There’s a lot I want to answer, but am running out of time right now (been online nearly 2 hours this session!). I will come back to your questions – I have been down that road of long months of abx, preds, and feeling worse, and in subsequent years had added health probs as a result ... Will get back soon, joy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted February 13, 2008 Report Share Posted February 13, 2008 Hi Cassie, There’s a lot I want to answer, but am running out of time right now (been online nearly 2 hours this session!). I will come back to your questions – I have been down that road of long months of abx, preds, and feeling worse, and in subsequent years had added health probs as a result ... Will get back soon, joy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted February 13, 2008 Report Share Posted February 13, 2008 Hi Cassie For me the antibiotics & puffers made no difference to my cough, mucous, wheezing.....nor did the steriods. I'm now waiting for the results of my last sputum samples and hopefully that will tell me what is in my lungs! The herbs however, have given me tremendous relieve (comparatively speaking) on occasion I will use the puffer Advair 500 and now with the reduction in my mucous the puffer makes a slight difference. Within any given day my mucous can be dark greenish grey, yellow, green, and clear which is very confusing and had to figure out what I should be doing for it! I went from producing on average a cup+ per day of mucous and with taking the herbs, I would say definitely less than a 1/4 cup and on some days maybe just a couple of mouthfuls. I can handle this! I took anti's combined with all the varieties of puffers..for approx. 7 months. It was the drug, plus the puffer either 4 puffs twice daily; or 2 puffs twice daily, depending what anti I was on. All the steroids did for me was put on over 20 lbs.....I did back to back steroids for 3 prescription of 100 tabs each.....My body totally did not like the steroids. My cough varies too sometimes I sound like a fog horn other times it is deep and sharp, and other times it is wheezy.....I also loose my voice never completely but I sound like it is going and this happens on average every couples of weeks..... I stopped the medications because the drugs were not doing any good for my Bronch and each time I suffered with a yeast infection (so it was constant for awhile), thrush too....even though I was taking yogurt, and acidopoulous....limited my sugar, and starches....The med's were too strong for my immune system.... If the med's are helping you then you should take them.....if they are not then look for an alternative that you can live with..... I believe now that this is the way life is going to be and its up to us to make the best life we can......gathering this from the group discussions, and what has happened to me personally....that is Until they come up with a treatment plan that works generally for the disease.... Hope this helps you with you decision. Good Luck, abx Hi , Thx for sharing your story. Glad to hear you're doing much better with the natural stuff. From when to when were you on antibiotics? Did your mucus production return to your original baseline (ie, did it get worse in terms of volume, frequency, yellowness, etc) after you stopped antibiotics? I'm sorta afraid to know how much sputum I'll spit up once I'm off antibiotics for fear it might be a lot worse than when I'm on the antibiotics. Are you still spitting up a rainbow of colors? Hopefully, the color is better now that you're on the natural stuff. Take care, Cassie Never miss a thing. Make Yahoo your homepage. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted February 13, 2008 Report Share Posted February 13, 2008 Hi Cassie For me the antibiotics & puffers made no difference to my cough, mucous, wheezing.....nor did the steriods. I'm now waiting for the results of my last sputum samples and hopefully that will tell me what is in my lungs! The herbs however, have given me tremendous relieve (comparatively speaking) on occasion I will use the puffer Advair 500 and now with the reduction in my mucous the puffer makes a slight difference. Within any given day my mucous can be dark greenish grey, yellow, green, and clear which is very confusing and had to figure out what I should be doing for it! I went from producing on average a cup+ per day of mucous and with taking the herbs, I would say definitely less than a 1/4 cup and on some days maybe just a couple of mouthfuls. I can handle this! I took anti's combined with all the varieties of puffers..for approx. 7 months. It was the drug, plus the puffer either 4 puffs twice daily; or 2 puffs twice daily, depending what anti I was on. All the steroids did for me was put on over 20 lbs.....I did back to back steroids for 3 prescription of 100 tabs each.....My body totally did not like the steroids. My cough varies too sometimes I sound like a fog horn other times it is deep and sharp, and other times it is wheezy.....I also loose my voice never completely but I sound like it is going and this happens on average every couples of weeks..... I stopped the medications because the drugs were not doing any good for my Bronch and each time I suffered with a yeast infection (so it was constant for awhile), thrush too....even though I was taking yogurt, and acidopoulous....limited my sugar, and starches....The med's were too strong for my immune system.... If the med's are helping you then you should take them.....if they are not then look for an alternative that you can live with..... I believe now that this is the way life is going to be and its up to us to make the best life we can......gathering this from the group discussions, and what has happened to me personally....that is Until they come up with a treatment plan that works generally for the disease.... Hope this helps you with you decision. Good Luck, abx Hi , Thx for sharing your story. Glad to hear you're doing much better with the natural stuff. From when to when were you on antibiotics? Did your mucus production return to your original baseline (ie, did it get worse in terms of volume, frequency, yellowness, etc) after you stopped antibiotics? I'm sorta afraid to know how much sputum I'll spit up once I'm off antibiotics for fear it might be a lot worse than when I'm on the antibiotics. Are you still spitting up a rainbow of colors? Hopefully, the color is better now that you're on the natural stuff. Take care, Cassie Never miss a thing. Make Yahoo your homepage. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted February 14, 2008 Report Share Posted February 14, 2008 Hi , Do you have names of these vits and herbs. I'm interested to know more. Many thanks Beatrice abx Hi Joy, Good to hear from you again. And thx for all your input about the sputum log, abx, etc. Yes, I've had sputum cultures done in the past before. Some grew serratia marcescens and streptococcus, I believe. I was effectively treated for those bugs but unfortunately the yellow sputum just never went away! Funny thing, all my health problems really seemed to stem from that severe pneumonia several years ago. I'm always thinking that maybe I'll be able to get to where I was pre-pneumonia but I'm starting to lose hope since the rotating abx, prednisone and MWF of Zithromax aren't eradicating the condition (they do seem to help but never get rid of the sputum entirely)! What exactly did you mean when you said if you become resistant you are making the bronch worse? I'm starting to think that despite my dr's recommendation, I should try weaning off abx even if my sputum production and the characteristics of the sputum look worse. Perhaps the amount I produce (even if more) will be my true baseline and not masked by the abx & steroids. I can't even tell anymore whether I'm having an exacerbation or whether the sputum production is my true baseline because I've been on abx for so long (ie, 9 months of rotating abx and then more recently a couple of months on Zithromax). Was just hoping the abx could reverse the bronch (or whatever it is I have!) by diminishing the mucus production and therefore the lung damage since my condition is supposedly still in the early stages. But in light of the resistance issue, it's so confusing and so hard to know what to do with this disease! Also, the Combivent seems to suppress my cough but the sputum has actually come back and looks worse (ie, yellower, thicker). Guess I spoke too soon about it being a miracle drug! Guess I was just too optimistic at the time! Hope you're doing okay, Cassie Be a better friend, newshound, and know-it-all with Yahoo! Mobile. Try it now. Never miss a thing. Make Yahoo your homepage. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted February 14, 2008 Report Share Posted February 14, 2008 Hi , Do you have names of these vits and herbs. I'm interested to know more. Many thanks Beatrice abx Hi Joy, Good to hear from you again. And thx for all your input about the sputum log, abx, etc. Yes, I've had sputum cultures done in the past before. Some grew serratia marcescens and streptococcus, I believe. I was effectively treated for those bugs but unfortunately the yellow sputum just never went away! Funny thing, all my health problems really seemed to stem from that severe pneumonia several years ago. I'm always thinking that maybe I'll be able to get to where I was pre-pneumonia but I'm starting to lose hope since the rotating abx, prednisone and MWF of Zithromax aren't eradicating the condition (they do seem to help but never get rid of the sputum entirely)! What exactly did you mean when you said if you become resistant you are making the bronch worse? I'm starting to think that despite my dr's recommendation, I should try weaning off abx even if my sputum production and the characteristics of the sputum look worse. Perhaps the amount I produce (even if more) will be my true baseline and not masked by the abx & steroids. I can't even tell anymore whether I'm having an exacerbation or whether the sputum production is my true baseline because I've been on abx for so long (ie, 9 months of rotating abx and then more recently a couple of months on Zithromax). Was just hoping the abx could reverse the bronch (or whatever it is I have!) by diminishing the mucus production and therefore the lung damage since my condition is supposedly still in the early stages. But in light of the resistance issue, it's so confusing and so hard to know what to do with this disease! Also, the Combivent seems to suppress my cough but the sputum has actually come back and looks worse (ie, yellower, thicker). Guess I spoke too soon about it being a miracle drug! Guess I was just too optimistic at the time! Hope you're doing okay, Cassie Be a better friend, newshound, and know-it-all with Yahoo! Mobile. Try it now. Never miss a thing. Make Yahoo your homepage. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted February 14, 2008 Report Share Posted February 14, 2008 Good Morning Beatrice I have sent the group my list a couple of times, I've changed my computer so I don't have it in my sent mail anymore. If you can't locate it I can make a new one for you, please let me know. Thanks, abx Hi Joy, Good to hear from you again. And thx for all your input about the sputum log, abx, etc. Yes, I've had sputum cultures done in the past before. Some grew serratia marcescens and streptococcus, I believe. I was effectively treated for those bugs but unfortunately the yellow sputum just never went away! Funny thing, all my health problems really seemed to stem from that severe pneumonia several years ago. I'm always thinking that maybe I'll be able to get to where I was pre-pneumonia but I'm starting to lose hope since the rotating abx, prednisone and MWF of Zithromax aren't eradicating the condition (they do seem to help but never get rid of the sputum entirely)! What exactly did you mean when you said if you become resistant you are making the bronch worse? I'm starting to think that despite my dr's recommendation, I should try weaning off abx even if my sputum production and the characteristics of the sputum look worse. Perhaps the amount I produce (even if more) will be my true baseline and not masked by the abx & steroids. I can't even tell anymore whether I'm having an exacerbation or whether the sputum production is my true baseline because I've been on abx for so long (ie, 9 months of rotating abx and then more recently a couple of months on Zithromax). Was just hoping the abx could reverse the bronch (or whatever it is I have!) by diminishing the mucus production and therefore the lung damage since my condition is supposedly still in the early stages. But in light of the resistance issue, it's so confusing and so hard to know what to do with this disease! Also, the Combivent seems to suppress my cough but the sputum has actually come back and looks worse (ie, yellower, thicker). Guess I spoke too soon about it being a miracle drug! Guess I was just too optimistic at the time! Hope you're doing okay, Cassie Be a better friend, newshound, and know-it-all with Yahoo! Mobile. Try it now. Never miss a thing. Make Yahoo your homepage. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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